European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton met ousted Egyptian president Mohammad Mursi late on Monday and held two hours of "in depth" discussions

European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton met ousted Egyptian president Mohammad Mursi late on Monday and held two hours of "in depth" discussions, Ashton's spokesperson said.

Spokesperson Maja Kocijancic said on her Twitter account that the meeting had taken place, but did not say where.

"Mursi is well," Ashton told reporters. "He has access to information in terms of TV, newspapers, so we were able to talk about the situation and we were able to talk about the need to move forward. "We had a friendly, open and very frank discussion," she added of their two-hour talks, declining to characterize Mursi's comments, or give details of where he is being held.

Ashton pressed efforts to broker an end to an increasingly bloody crisis. Her intensive talks with leaders of both the army-installed interim government and the Islamist opposition came as supporters of Mohammad Mursi vowed no let-up in their demonstrations for his reinstatement despite weekend clashes that left 82 people dead.

On Monday, Ashton met General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the head of the army and the man behind Mursi's overthrow. She also held talks with members of the interim government installed by the army, and representatives of the Freedom and Justice Party, the Brotherhood's political wing.

Before arriving, she said she would press for a "fully inclusive transition process, taking in all political groups, including the Muslim Brotherhood".

Sources told AFP that Ashton had left Cairo in a military helicopter late on Monday for the undisclosed location where Mursi is being held.
  
On her last visit on July 17, Ashton unsuccessfully requested to meet the ousted president and urged his release.

His supporters have rallied daily for his reinstatement and on Monday marched from a key Cairo sit-in to several security headquarters. In the eastern city of Ismailia, a security source said clashes between Mursi supporters and opponents broke out, injuring 18.
  
The Anti-Coup Alliance called for a million-man march later on Tuesday under the banner of "Martyrs of the Coup" to commemorate its dead at a rally in Cairo on Saturday. It urged Egyptians "to go out into the streets and squares, to regain their freedom and dignity -- that are being usurped by the bloody coup -- and for the rights of the martyrs assassinated by its bullets".